The Rangers have sone glaring issues that need to be addressed.
The Rangers may be in trouble. How big remains to be seen. That's the forecast I read after listening to Blueshirts' 1994 Cup-winning GM Neil Smith and his "NHL Wraparound" podcaster Vic Morren.
Pay attention to these guys because they're among the smartest and purely honest team appraisers in the business.
"The Rangers have problems of their own making," asserted Smith. "Losing Barclay Goodrow is one of them. He was an alternate captain and appreciated by his teammates as a player with spirit. This could turn out to be a problem with the player base."
Morren, who had a long and successful career at ESPN, cited a Ranger playoff weakness against Florida. "They don't go hard to the net."
Smith pointed out that the Jacob (Is He The Captain?) Trouba mess could boomerang especially if the alleged "C"-Man is demoted to the third defensive pairing.
But that issue could pale in significance compared to contract battles with Igor Shesterkin and his rep on one said with GM Chris Drury and the MSG Vault on the other.
"Shesterkin is going to want to be the highest-paid goalie in the league," said Smith. "In the class with (Tampa Bay's) Andrei Vasilevskiy. It's going to be interesting to see if Igor will be okay with extended negotiations."
Vas is a two-time Stanley Cup winner. Iggy has zero Cups. "But Igor could come back and say that he didn't have the team in front of him to win it," added Morren.
Both Neil and Vic agreed that the Rangers' regular season style works but the Blueshirts lack enough substantive players to win a Cup.
"They spend too much time in their own zone," claimed Morren. "And they don't play a North-South game."
Smith: "I don't see them playing 'meat grinder hockey. They're not capable of that. The top teams like Florida can but I don't think that the Rangers can do it!"
Then there was the matter of coaching. Neil touched a nerve when he pointed out that Peter Laviolette's first season with a team always seems to be his best. Smith's unshielded inference is that Lavvy's success rate slips after that.
Which could mean that 2024-25 could be less than the best in the arena where the theme remains, STANLEY CUP OR BUST!
"The Rangers are stuck in 'PARK'" Smith concluded. "I don't see any improvement at all!"
